Periple

I don’t think there’s all that much disagreement about the objective here really. @Kerbart describes its gameplay function really well: with no wobble at all badly-designed vessels would just fail for no visible reason. There are a couple of people who would prefer that, but I think most of us (including Nate!) just want it brought down to a level where it’s intuitive. It’s clearly wrong that a conventionally designed three-stage rocket on a conventional trajectory flexes visibly, and if it flexes so much that it makes it more difficult to make orbit that’s a major problem. On the other hand, some crazy designs ought to collapse on the launchpad!

If the next update adds heating and fixes the wobbles, I think we’ll be all set for Science. I’m really looking forward to getting back into KSP2 when that drops!

I very much liked Nate’s vision of how it should be: stacks are rigid but surface-attached masses flex. If it was me I’d probably just make all joints except surface ones rigid and then refine it from there.

If they had done this prior to launch I think the atmosphere would be totally different. We would have had a good idea both of what shape it’s in and project velocity. “We know it’s rough but can’t wait to let you get your little green paws on it anyway” is a positive message. I think it’s too late to change that now though.

Unity has really good support for VR. It's a relatively low-hanging fruit. Relatively...

I think it’s unlikely they’ll hotfix anything other than the registry bug. Otherwise testing it would take too long.

I'm not saying they're the same, just that they're in the same ballpark. The hardcore flight sim niche is also a niche. I think KSP has the potential to reach a much bigger audience.

KSP peak players on Steam until recently was about 6,000. MS Flight Simulator is around 10,000. They're in the same ballpark.

They would be either rough (THE INCOMPETENT FOOLS!) or edited not to look rough (THE LIARS!). Either way you lose. I remember them posting a screenshot from a multiplayer session and people here accusing them of faking it and demanding video evidence instead. Of course the easy counter to this is YOU CAN’T PROVE IT WASN’T FAKE because obviously I can’t… but then you couldn’t prove a video they posted wasn’t fake either. Gameplay videos are really easy to fake if you want to! As I said above, I think the only evidence that could move the needle in the right direction is solid gameplay more or less as previously described. Until then, anything they say will only make things worse. It will get picked apart in the most negative possible light, like the reception to the update on the heating system (DUMBED DOWN! UNACCEPTABLE!), or just rejected outright as lies (see: multiple statements about multiplayer with an accompanying screenshot, multiple statements about no microtransactions). If they say nothing, you will seethe. If they do say something, you will seethe even more. So why say anything? Where’s the upside? Just keep your nose to the grindstone and make a great game, the community will come around.

MS Flight Simulator has about 10k peak players. It's not THAT huge, and also it's a more contested genre. I think KSP has the potential to be bigger. Factorio f.ex has about double that.

Yeah pretty much, the franchise won't work without it and it's not big enough to start over a second time.

Microsoft Flight Simulator has had lots of versions so why not KSP? If they can keep selling updated versions of the game, why wouldn't they?

This is pretty squarely in "can't happen" territory. If KSP2 doesn't fly for whatever reason, they'll just close down Intercept and mothball the IP. I would really only expect that to happen if T2 decides to close down Private Division. In that situation, the best we can hope for is a spiritual successor from somebody else. (Moreover, the engine really isn't the problem, and there isn't another engine on the market that's obviously better suited to make KSP2 than Unity.)

Originally they said that they expected Microsoft to cover the install fees for GamePass. So much for "only small developers!"

The issue with KSP2 isn’t lack of communication. The issue is a botched launch and subsequent slow progress. I still believe they can turn this around, but it all hangs on the roadmap updates. Deeds, not words.

Whoever it is, I agree with them. The downside risk outweighs the upside. With the current sentiment anything they say will be used against them. Saying anything at all about it runs a real risk of poisoning the well for the actual release. Better to be silent and release it when it’s ready.

Lawyers also save money. For example, they can get you out of extortionate contracts!

No but my studio employs some!

Thing about contracts is, they’re not always enforceable. That includes arbitration clauses. This is why lawyers’ services continue to be in demand.

They do have a choice. You don’t need 3000 people to maintain a game engine. They can downsize so their costs match their revenues. I think they will have to, because their customers clearly aren’t having it with these cash grabs.

I don’t think a retroactive change like that would stand up to a legal challenge anyway. Main thing is, we can now finish our ongoing projects and have a year or two to decide where to go next. Unless there are really drastic changes at Unity (like, a buyout and a total change in leadership and business model) I think it will be somewhere else.

Updated terms are nowhere near as crazy. They will only apply to future versions of Unity and the fee is capped at 2.5% of revenue. So at least it won’t continue to cost you money indefinitely. I don’t think it’s cool to double-dip with both per-seat and rev share, pick one, not both (or offer alternative plans so we can choose) and a lot of damage has been done. But at least already released games won’t be affected and current projects will most likely be able to continue normally. I think the long term future of the engine is still looking very murky though! https://unity.com/pricing-updates

Communication is a lot of work! Especially when you have to be extra careful to make sure you don’t say anything that could be misconstrued. Developers have other things on their plate and if they have to make a presentation every week that’s bound to suffer!

Fortunately you won’t have to, buy it, try it, if it doesn’t perform to your expectations, refund it!

I think they’re scaled down for gameplay reasons! If it took 10 minutes just to get to orbit every time that would get boring!